| Pravasi Express Awards | |
|---|---|
 Pravasi Express Award in 2013 | |
| Awarded for | Excellence in Community Service & Arts |
| Country | Singapore |
| Presented by | Pravasi Publications |
| First awarded | 2013 |
Pravasi Express Awards were introduced in 2013 for appreciating personalities for outstanding contributions to society and endeavours in their chosen field/profession. The awards are overseen by Pravasi Publications from Singapore, publishers of the Pravasi Express Newspaper.
The first Pravasi Express Awards were presented on 4 August 2013 in a public function at Spring Auditorium, Singapore with over 400 guests. The Former Chief Minister of Kerala V. S. Achuthanandan was awarded the first Pravasi Express "Life Achievement Award" in the ceremony. The award ceremony was presided over by Ambassador-at-Large Gopinatha Pillai with the presence of Malayalam Lyrist Anil Panachooran and actor Unni Mukundan. [1] [2]
The second edition of Pravasi Express Awards were presented during the third anniversary celebration of Pravasi Express held on 5 July 2014 at Nexus Auditorium, Singapore. The awards ceremony was presided over by Ambassador-at-Large Gopinatha Pillai and singer Jayachandran was awarded the "Life Achievement Award" for his contribution to music. National Award winner Priyamani received the "Youth Icon Award". There were musical performances from Jayachandran, Chandralekha, Ragesh Brahmanandan and Snehaja.
Pravasi Express awards are given to Indians from different part of the world, to honor their contributions to society and endeavours in their chosen field/profession. The awards cover different categories including social commitment, business excellence, contribution to Malayalee diaspora, arts and also to appreciate the emerging champions in all the categories. [3] [4] [5]
Pravasi Express Awards 2020 were awarded in a virtual event held on 18 July 2020. T.P Sreenivasan, former IFS Official and Ambassador was awarded the Malayalee Ratna Award. He has served as secretary of legation in Tokyo, Thimphu, Moscow. He has also served as a permanent representative of India to the United Nations. PE Life Time Achievement Award was presented to the renowned dancer, founder and chief mentor / trainer of Baskar's Academy - Mrs Santha Bhaskar for her six-long decade's significant contribution in the field of music and dance. Young talented actor Tovino Thomas was awarded the Youth icon award and the award event was followed by musical performance from Harish Sivaramakrishnan.
| PE Malayalee Ratna Award | T.P Sreenivasan, Former IFS Official and Ambassador |
| PE Life Time Achievement Award | Santha Bhaskar, Renowned dancer |
| PE Youth Icon Award | Tovino Thomas, Actor |
| PE Social Excellence Award | Shaji Philip, Philanthropist |
| PE Young Entrepreneur Award | Anes M.K. |
Pravasi Express Awards 2019 [6] [7] [8] [9] were awarded in Pravasi Express Nite 2019 held at Shine Auditorium, Singapore with the presence of Ambassador-at-Large Gopinatha Pillai, Dr. V.P. Nair, Pravasi Express Chief Editor Mr.Rajesh Kumar, Chengannur MLA Saji Cheriyan and Singapore Kairali Kala Nilayam secretary Mr.Basil Baby.
Poet and activist Sugathakumari was honored with the Pravasi Express Lifetime Achievement Award for her contribution to Malayalam Literature. Award night was followed by a musical performance from Shahabaz Aman and dance performance by Film actor Arya Rohit. Malayalam comedy actor Ullas Pandalam and team also entertained the guests.
Award night also witnessed the inauguration of Singapore Kairali Film Forum (SKFF) by Singapore Film director K. Rajagopal which was followed by the screening of the first micro film from SKFF Godfather.
| PE Lifetime Achievement Award | Sugathakumari, poet and activist |
| PE Music Excellence Award | Shahabaz Aman, playback singer and composer |
| PE BusinessExcellence Award | Joy Allukas |
| PE Social Excellence Award | Saji Cheriyan, politician |
| PE Vanitha Ratnam Award | Dr. Lissy Shajahan |
| PE Art and Culture Excellence Award | Dr. Chitra Krishnakumar |
| PE Sports Excellence Award | Rahul K Raju |
Pravasi Express Awards 2018 [10] [11] [12] were awarded in Pravasi Express Nite 2018 held at Kallang Theatre, Singapore with the presence of Mr. Lee Hong Chuang BBM, Advisor Hougang Grassroot Organisation, Ambassador-at-Large Gopinatha Pillai, Pravasi Express Chief Editor Mr.Rajesh Kumar, National Film Award playback singer Ms.Vani Jayaram and Singapore Kairali Kala Nilayam secretary Mr.Basil Baby.
Veteran Playback Singer Vani Jayaram was awarded the Pravasi Express Lifetime Achievement Award for her contribution to Indian film industry and Malayalam film actor Suraj Venjaramood was awarded with Pravasi Express acting Excellence Award for his contribution to Malayalam film industry . Award night was followed by music from Vani Jayaram and actor Suraj Venjaramood entertained the crowd. Abhijeet Kollam, Vaishnav Girish and Praseeda also sang.
| PE Lifetime Achievement Award | Vani Jairam, playback singer |
| PE Acting Excellence Award | Suraj Venjaramood, film actor |
| PE Youth Icon Award | Aishwarya Lekshmi, film actress |
| PE Vanitha Ratnam Award | Annie Libu |
| PE BusinessExcellence Award | Shera Thampi, Dowser Group |
| PE BusinessExcellence Award | Phillip Michael, Y Axis |
| PE BusinessExcellence Award | Prabhiraj Natarajan, Aris Group |
| PE Art and Culture Excellence Award | MM Dollah |
| PE Social Excellence Award | C M Ashhraf Ali, Malaysia |
| PE Award for Best Singer | Abhijith Kollam |
Other honorable award recipients were Jaleela Niaz (PE Special Awards - Excellence in Visual Arts) and Hema Malini (PE Special Awards - Excellence in Art and Culture).
Pravasi Express Awards 2017 [13] [14] [15] took place in Pravasi Express Nite 2017 held at Holiday Inn, Singapore in the presence of Kerala Minister for Culture and Law Mr. AK Balan, Singapore Indian High Commissioner Mr.Javed Ashraf and Pravasi Express Chief Editor Mr.Rajesh Kumar. Minister Mr. AK Balan presided over the function and also inaugurated the 60th anniversary celebrations of Kairalee Kala Nilayam, Singapore. Veteran Film actor Madhu (actor) was honored with the Pravasi Express Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to Malayalam film industry and Football Legend IM Vijayan was awarded with Pravasi Express Lifetime Sports Excellence Award.
| PE Lifetime Achievement Award | Madhu (actor), film actor |
| PE Lifetime Sports Excellence Award | IM Vijayan, football player |
| PE Malayalee Ratna Award | Sohan Roy |
| PE BusinessExcellence Award | Capt. Rajesh Unni, Synergy Group |
| PE Film Critic Award | Vinu Mohan, actor |
| PE Youth Icon Award | Rajisha Vijayan, actor |
Other recipients were D Sudheeran (Literary Award), Shanta Rati (Dance Icon of Singapore), Sangeetha Nambiar (Women Empowerment), Deivani (Community Engagement), Dr.V P Nair (Health Care), Shilpa Krishnan Shukla (Women Achiever), Arun Sundar (Information Technology), Prajith Manikkoth (Young Achiever), Stephan Samuel (Social Excellence), Mallika Girish Panicher (Performing Arts) and Dr. Anitha Devi Pillai (Research Literature), Sooraj & Ann (Crtic Award: Acting).
Pravasi Express Awards 2016 [16] were presented by Ambassador-at-Large Gopinatha Pillai in “Pravasi Express Nite-2016” held at Kallang Theatre on 6 August 2016. The event was preceded over by Pravasi Express Editor-in-Chief G Rajesh Kumar and K B Ganesh Kumar, film actor and former Kerala minister was the guest of honour. The award function was followed by music led by G Venugopal and drama by Singapore Kairalee Kala Nilayam, Singapore.
| PE Lifetime Achievement Award | Daya Bai, social activist |
| PE Music Excellence Award | G Venugopal, singer |
| PE Media Excellence Award | MP Shyam Kumar, Kerala Kaumudi, Kannur Unit Chief |
| PE Social Excellence Award | Jayadev Unnithan |
| PE Youth Choice Award | Parvathy Nambiar |
| PE Yuva Pravasi Award | Shaji Philip |
Pravasi Express Awards were also presented to Jayakumar Aravindakshan (retail business), Sreenivas Kurupp (IT Business), Ashok Nair (Sports Excellence) and Gangadharan Kunnon (Community engagement) for work in their respective fields.
The awards [17] were presented by Ambassador-at-Large Gopinatha Pillai, Actress Priyamani, All Malaysia Malayalee Association president Ravindran Menon and other famous personalities from India and Singapore. The award categories are as follows:
| PE Lifetime Achievement Award | P. Jayachandran, singer |
| PE Malayalee Ratna Award | Tan Sri Datuk Ravindran Menon, Malaysia |
| PE Literary Award | M.K Bhasi, Malayalam poet and writer, Singapore |
| PE Youth Icon of the Year | Priyamani, National Award winner Actress |
| PE Vanitha Ratna Award | Latha K Namboodiri, Krystal Group, Bangalore |
| PE Business Excellence Award | Alexander Vadakkedam, India |
| PE Young Entrepreneur Award | Reju Kumar, Singapore |
| PE Young Achiever Award | Varun Chandran, Corporate360, Singapore. |
Pravasi Express – Rising Star Award was given to outstanding Malayalee youngster in social, arts, sports or academics category. This award was given to Miss. Anjali George for her performance in contemporary art and creative paintings.
The winners of Pravasi Express – Editorial Excellence Awards 2014 are as follows:
| PE Journalist of the year | Basil Baby |
| PE Photojournalist of the year | Lijesh Karunakaran |
| PE Special Award | Ms.Chitra KrishnaKumar, Krishna Lal PV, Panayam Liju, MKV Rajesh and Venmony Bimalraj |
The awards were presented by Ambassador-at-Large Gopinatha Pillai, lyrist Anil Panachooran, actor Unni Mukundan and many other famous personalities in Singapore. The award categories is as follows: [18] [19] [20]
| PE Lifetime Achievement Award | V. S. Achuthanandan, former Chief Minister of Kerala |
| PE Literary Award | Anil Panachooran, Malayalam film lyricist and poet |
| PE Youth Icon of the Year | Unni Mukundan, film actor |
| PE Social Excellence Award | P. K. Koshy, President Singapore Malayalee Association |
| PE Business Excellence Award | Tony Vincent, Aratt Developers, Bangalore, India |
| PE Young Entrepreneur Award | Ajith Kumar T, Singapore Coliseum, Singapore |
| PE Yuva Pravasi Award | Syam Kumar Prabhakaran, Malayalam Educational Society, Singapore |
The award ceremony also witnessed the honoring of two eminent Malayalees in Singapore. Shekhari Varma, Maharaja of Palaghat and was a freedom fighter for Indian Independence. Dominic Puthucheary, founding member of the People Action Party in Singapore and Malayalee who participated in shaping of Singapore.
Pravasi Express – Rising Star Award was given to outstanding Malayalee youngster in social, sports or academics category. This award was given to Vishal Thaniyath, U-16 Football Player in Singapore S.League.
Pravasi Express – Editorial Excellence Awards was introduced to recognize individuals on their contributions in different news arena and the winners were as follows
| PE Journalist of the year | Basil Baby |
| PE Newspaper Feature Writer of the year | Panayam Liju |
| PE Photojournalist of the year | Nivesh Thekkarath |
| PE Special Award | A.R Jose and Mr. Subu Iyer |
| Editorial contributions | Ms Chitra Krishna Kumar and Ms Suchitthra Vasu |
Velikkakathu Sankaran Achuthanandan, popularly known by his initials V. S., is an Indian politician who was the Chief Minister of Kerala from 2006 to 2011. At 82, he was the oldest person to have assumed the office. He is affiliated to the Communist Party of India (Marxist). He served as the chairman of Administrative reforms in Kerala with state cabinet rank from 2016 to 2021. He has served as Leader of the Opposition for 15 years which makes him the longest serving Leader of the Opposition in Kerala Legislative Assembly.
Madhavan Nair, commonly known by his stage name Madhu, is an Indian actor, director, producer, former college lecturer and former film studio owner, who works in Malayalam cinema and a certain number of Hindi and Tamil films. He was a prominent lead actor during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s and has acted in more than 400 films. Madhu has also directed 12 films, produced 15 films and at one time owned the Uma Film Studio. He was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India in 2013 for his contributions towards the arts. He was honored with the J. C. Daniel Award by the Government of Kerala in 2004, for his outstanding contributions to Malayalam films. He is the president of Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) Kerala Unit.
Kaviyoor Ponnamma is an Indian actress who appears in Malayalam films and television. She began her career performing in theatre dramas before foraying into cinema. She has also acted in TV serials and commercials and has playback singing credits in few films. Ponnamma is a four-time Kerala State Film Award for Second Best Actress winner. Her sister Kaviyoor Renuka was also an actress. Often called as the Mother to all actors, she has acted as mother of almost all actors in her career panning over decades. At the age of 20, she played the mother of Sathyan and Madhu in the 1965 movie Thommente Makkal. She gained critical acclaim for acting as the mother of the actor Mohanlal.
Vani Jairam was an Indian playback singer in Indian cinema. She is fondly referred to as the "Meera of modern India" Vani's career started in 1971 and has spanned over five decades. She did playback for over one thousand Indian movies recording over 20,000 songs. In addition, she recorded thousands of devotionals and private albums and also participated in numerous solo concerts in India and abroad.
N. N. Pillai was an Indian playwright, actor, theatre director, orator, screenplay writer, lyricist and an I.N.A Freedom fighter. : in INA - Indian National Army). He has been given the title “Nadakacharyan” of Malayalam Theatre. through his contributions to theater as a playwright, director, actor and a producer.
Sreekumaran Thampi is an Indian lyricist, music director, director, producer and screenwriter in Malayalam cinema. He also writes poetry and is a recipient of the Vallathol Award. In 2017, he was awarded the J. C. Daniel Award, Kerala government's highest honour for contributions to Malayalam cinema.
N. Sreedharan Nair, popularly known as Kottarakkara Sreedharan Nair or just Kottarakkara, was an Indian actor, born as the son of Narayana Pillai and Ummini Amma in Kollam district, Kerala. He appeared in Malayalam movies.
Siddique (born 1 October 1962 ) is an Indian actor and producer, who works mainly in Malayalam cinema. Along with appearing in over 350 Malayalam films, he has also acted in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi language films. He is known for having played a wide range of starring and supporting roles, including comic characters, romantic leads, anti-heroes and villains.
Kalpana Ranjani, better known mononymously as Kalpana, was an Indian actress who appeared in South Indian films, predominantly in Malayalam and Tamil. Kalpana has acted in over 300 films in various South Indian languages. She won the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Thanichalla Njan (2012) at the 60th National Film Awards. Kalpana started her career as a child artist in the late 1970s. Although she came into the industry with the intention of being a lead actress, she turned out to be popular among the audiences for her comic roles.
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Pravasi Express is a bilingual newspaper publishing from Singapore. Formed in 2012, the newspaper presents news from various categories like Singapore news, Kerala news, world news, entertainment, lifestyle, arts and culture, technology, sports and movies.
New generation films is a Malayalam film movement developed in the early 2010s, characterized by fresh and unusual themes and new narrative techniques. Films of the new wave differ from conventional themes of the past two decades and introduced several new trends and techniques to the Malayalam film industry. While the new generation formats and styles are deeply influenced by global trends, their thematics are firmly rooted in Malayalee life and mindscapes.
G. Keshava Pillai was an Indian actor and army and naval officer known for his work in Malayalam cinema. He was active for 65 years, acting in more than 325 Malayalam films, and is known for revolutionising the role of the antagonist in Indian cinema and television. He was known for his acclaimed villain roles in Vadakkanpattu action films, historical films and other action films during the 70s and 80s. He took also many notable roles in family-focused films and TV shows. He is the only actor during the 80s to have accomplished most of his stunts in films without the use of stunt doubles.
Krishna is an Indian actor who appears in Malayalam film in addition to Tamil language films. He made his acting debut at the age of 14 as a child artist in the Malayalam film Napoleon. His debuted as a lead actor with Rishyasringan in 1997 with Bhanupriya.
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Malaysian Malayalees, also known as Malayalee Malaysians, are people of Malayali descent who were born in or immigrated to Malaysia from the Malayalam speaking regions of Kerala. They are the second largest Indian ethnic group, making up approximately 15% of the Malaysian Indian population. The bulk of Malaysian Malayali migration began during the British Raj, when the British facilitated the migration of Indian workers to work in plantations, but unlike the majority Tamils, the vast majority of the Malayalis were recruited as supervisors in the oil palm estates that followed the kangani system, and some were into trading and small businesses with a significant proportion of them running groceries or restaurants. Over 90% of the Malayalee population in Malaysia are Malaysian citizens.
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